Candice Bergen “Is Living the Life She Always Dreamed of” at Age 72 (EXCLUSIVE)

Actress and former model Candice Bergen strode proudly onto the stage of NYC's Carnegie Hall, flanked by her Murphy Brown co-stars, at CBS' recent fall lineup announcement. "It's so great to have the gang back together," she said. "And to hear Americans cheering for a bunch of journalists."

It's the kind of timely wisecrack Murphy often made on the hit 1988 to 1998 sitcom and will continue to make on the show's upcoming reboot. And like her character, Candice always tells it like it is. While recently addressing her youthful good looks, she told People that, "People who don't have it think beauty is a blessing, but actually it sets you apart." And when it comes to her later-in-life weight gain, she wrote in her memoir, A Fine Romance, "I am fat. I live to eat."

"She's pretty low-maintenance," a friend of the actress exclusively told Closer Weekly in a new interview. "She's never been affected with an actor's big ego." That's all the more remarkable considering she was raised around celebrities as the daughter of ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. "My parents would have a party… I remember Rex Harrison singing at the piano, Fred Astaire dancing with all the ladies," she said in an interview with Sandra Bullock. "It was completely normal."

Candice made a name for herself with sharp-witted performances in films (Starting Over), and TV (Saturday Night Live), and won five Emmys for Murphy Brown, which she started shooting shortly after giving birth to daughter Chloe, now 32. "It's hard to have a marriage, a child, and a career," Candice — whose first husband, French filmmaker Louis Malle, died of lymphoma when Chloe was 10 — wrote in her memoir. "I believe in putting the child first." She’s been happily remarried to real estate mogul Marshall Rose since 2000, and these days, Candice and Chloe are closer than ever. "Candice just revels in spending time with her," an insider told Closer. "She says her daughter truly is the biggest blessing in her life."

Candice and her daughter, Chloe.

At 72, Candice is experiencing an unlikely career renaissance. In addition to the new Murphy, she's co-starring in the big-screen comedy Book Club opposite a trio of other actresses of a certain age: Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, and Mary Steenburgen. "The studio wanted to cast it much, much younger," Candice recently told the Detriot Free Press. "But this population is not only underserved, it isn't served at all."

As for the revamped Murphy, "It feels very current and very fresh," she added. And Candice hopes it will introduce her to a whole different audience. "She’s happy she’s having her moment again," said the insider. "And that a new generation will be discovering her." Added her friend, "Candice is living the life she always dreamed of now — and returning to Murphy Brown is like the cherry on top."

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